If I were king...

Sometimes the obstacles or challenges we face in life seem to all arrive at the most inconvenient time. If I were king of the world I would decree that we should never have to face more than one challenge at a time. I suppose if I were king I could just as easily decree that no one need face these unfair challenges at all. But as a wise king I know that challenges build character, or so they tell me. My character must be a skyscraper by now.

I was talking to God this morning. I began to wonder how He sees these numerous trials that I am suddenly facing. He is a pretty awesome God, all I had to do is think of the question, I didn’t even ask Him out loud, and He answered me in a way that only the God of the universe can.  An image of just one word developed in my thought furnace. Bold letters in my favorite font, the single word floated above all other thoughts—Small!

Worries, challenges, problems, call them what you like, that seem so large to me look so small to God. Late at night when these problems tower over me, robbing me of sleep, God looks down on them and says “So what? They do not matter. When are you going to learn to trust me?”

Late at night my answer is often, “Tomorrow God.” When I wake up, lacking true rest, the problems are still there.  I forget my late night promise to start trusting tomorrow. Instead I start all over with the worrying and planning. But God doesn’t forget.

Most times slowly and in small portions God starts making the way. Big, medium or small problems start to be not problems at all. On the stage that is my life God is working in the wings. It is incredible how He lines things up so perfectly, without us even realizing, so our worries float away.

Now if I was king I would knock your problems away swiftly and with nuclear power. There would be no waiting or worrying, no sleepless nights. What God does is delicate; He uses other people, circumstances or events to help. He uses others to bless them as he blesses us. What God does is perfect. He makes a better King than I.

I look at our world today and think if I was king I would put an end to the terror, I would stop the hatred and the bigotry. Oh but I know even the mightiest king would fail at such a grand endeavor. So instead I talk to God and tell Him what I think He should do. Arrogance unconstrained! I am sure God has a chuckle each time I endeavor to advise Him!

Yet I don’t stop. You see dear friend I know the majesty of God. I know His power. I know His love. I know that God promised that His Son would return claiming His kingdom. So I point out to Him that now would be a really good time to make good on this promise. I tell Him, “Just look around God, you can see all the problems. You could make them all go away with the breath from your nostrils! With a swipe of your mighty hand you could end evil. “I know that if God sees my problems as Small, then He can see the world’s problems as fleeting and trivial.

 “So come back now! What are you waiting for?” I plea from bended knee.

God answers again, this time with two words—“One more.”

  

The day will surely come when God is waiting on just one more. Just one more to turn towards Him and say “Yes, I believe!” He won’t come back until all who will believe have done so. His love is so great that it would be impossible to leave even one behind. Everything else is so small, nothing else matters to God. Oh to understand a love so great!

On God’s stage we are working in the wings. Are you ready for Him to use you to bring one more to Him? If you are like me, a man who will never be king, then your answer is no. As long as I worry, as long as I lose sleep, as long as I forget to trust…I can’t be ready. 

How about you?